Many people in their 20s do not know what their dreams are, just spending their youth similarly to others. They pass through their lives without looking back on themselves or listening to their inner voices, mainly because they are conscious of other people’s eyes and afraid of being left behind. They want to find their dream, but it’s not easy because they don’t even know about themselves. Unsure of their dreams, many young people just choose to live similarly to others, or getting a job their parents want them to have.
Mi-Kyung Kim, a motivational speaker who is known as the ‘national speaker,’ wrote the book titled ‘Dream on.’ The book indicates why a lot of young people don’t know what their dreams are and why they have conflict between reality and dreams, empathizing their agony and diagnosing their problems. She claims the importance of practice to fulfill their dreams, their reality, and strategic challenges. Most self-help books for youths suggest that young people should courageously pursue their dream when they are having a conflict between the dream and reality, but Kim’s voice is different and that is what makes the book so interesting.

Many youths are torn between money and dream, or reality and ideal, so to speak. If they chase their dream, they would starve for money and if they pursue money they would recede from their dream. Kim tells people in their 20s not to just blindly pursue their dreams. In case the basic livelihood is in danger, money should come first. Dream reflects your own self, so if you starve your dream, you would also starve to death. To keep your dream alive, you should first have to be able to support yourself. Due to practical problems, you might be busy doing a part-time job, not having time to study. But that’s all right! Meanwhile you will be able to obtain valuable things which will nourish and nurture your dream. To sustain a dream, sufficient economic power to support your dream is crucial. It is important that you become the major shareholder of your dream. The driving force to achieve your dream follows you thereafter.

What is “dream” exactly? Kim defines it as ‘realizing myself by a strong motive,’ that is, pursuing my dream may fulfill the ‘real me.’ Then, who is the ‘real me?’ If ‘I’ am a white canvas, the ‘real me’ is a painting that I drew on the canvas---in other words, my potential. To know the ‘real me,’ we need to have a lot of conservations with ourselves. We should be able to understand ourselves by asking various questions like ‘what I like, what I do well, and what do I hate.’ If you really know about yourself you will eventually find out the right direction of your dream. And if you figure out your direction, your parents, and other people’s eyes won’t be the obstacle any longer. The important thing is to have a realistic and clear dream, and wisely invest for your dream. If you become a shareholder, supporter, and strategist of your own dream, what you have to do is unremittingly put your efforts into step by building your dream.

Kim uses the term of ‘dream worker’ to refer to a person who knows his or her dream exactly, and jumps into that dream eagerly. Her own ‘dream worker’ age is 14 years old, which means it has been 14 years since she recognized her dream and began to invest her efforts in her dream. ‘Dream age’ grows since we begin to put in our efforts and be passionate for our dream.

Is your dream switch on? Do you feel frustrated because you don’t know what your dream is? If so, I recommend the book ‘Dream on.’ It will give you the way to become more practical and strategic for your dream. Now, let’s meet our dream through this book.